Computes Mercator Projection of input latitude/longitude coordinates (in
degrees) into (x, y) coordinates (as distances in meters) from the
meridian/equator. Also provides a method to convert back into latitude,
longitude.
Notes
Use of Mercator projection on latitudes above/below +70/-70 degrees is
strongly discouraged, due to the gross distortions of the projection.
In fact, any use of the Mercator projection is strongly
discouraged...but its the view we've all been programmed to see for 400
years, so its genetic sense memory by now. And if its good enough for
Google, its good enough for me.
This module was developed primarily for graphic rendering purposes. The
returned distance values *should not be used for navigational
purposes*. They are only useful for certain mapping operations, e.g.,
rendering a map to scale. For better approximations of actual
distances, consider the Math::Trig manpage's great_circle_distance()
function instead.